So in July I will be taking His Royal Highness on a road trip that will be taking us throught the southwest. Its gonna be Hot. Like FREAKIN HOT. Is there anything I should do when driving between LA and Phoenix and Phoenix to Las Vegas? And driving through the desert while in Vegas? I have never been around that much heat before, so would like to know what, if any, precautions I should take for the MINI.

 

None really. If you have a sunroof pull the screen, and watch the shift **** it'll get hot. Be paitient with the a/c. It will take a few miles for it to cool down the inside on a nice hot day. Oh, and lots of water for yourself .

Nik

 

Couldn't have said it any better....and have LOTS of water for yourself....in a cooler, if possible. When Wanda was new, and I was returning from the first cross-country roadtrip, from Arizona to just west of Palm Springs, it was between 98-116F! She did just fine....the a/c DOES take a while to get cool enough, but it works quite well.

 

Excellent info! I guess i already knew that. Was planning on lots of water and i need to get out and buy a cooler.

 

Try Target! They have reasonable and very attractive, MINI-esque coolers.

 

Ooohh, good idea! Only 1.7 months till vacation and about 3 weeks until MINI!

 

I bet Target has either a black or a charcoal grey cooler! Should look "hot!"

 

Don't forget that you'll have a cooled glove box as well. Nice for chillin' beverages if you don't have an actual cooler.

spike

 

Find a light colored towel to cover the top of dash from the windshield, I warped my dash pad in my Vette at 114 F between AZ and Vegas and the heat from that surface alone is what keeps the interior of the car hot.
A very light gray would be best, I tried white paper because that's all I had and it really helped but the problem was it was reflecting inside the windshield reducing my visibility, if you can keep that surface cool it will help a lot, it's like having a heater turned on at full heat when the sun hits that surface.

 

damn, that is a hell of a good idea

 

Travel at night.

 

I drove through Death Valley one fine August afternoon a couple years ago... 115F. Car was fine -- even when we hit a traffic jam.

BUT... one thing you should definitely try to do: hit the Mad Greek in (I think) Baker, CA. GOOD FOOD!

 

I don't know if the newer cars have a solid shade but mine has a "perf" shade.... I might look for very...very light reflective material to slide on top of the shade.....don't strtch the shade itself (I assume you have a sunroof)

 

Bring extra fluids for yourself and the car. AKA, Gatorade and Mobil 1 Synthetic 5w-30. Hehe.

 

If you have leather seats, you might consider a terry or other cloth slip cover for them. I find cloth more comfortable in warmer weather. The more absorbant, the better.

 

Also be sure to take some time to meet up with MINI owners in Phoenix. Post on the dynamicminicollective.com and let us know!

 

Have you thought about having "His Royal Highness, The Earl of Gray" windows tinted?? I just had Angel tinted and has made a noticable difference.

 

This works well (for sunroof cars) when motoring or parked. http://www.stratmosphere.com/mini_interior.htm

 

Between Phoenix and Lost Wages try heading through Flagstaff--it'll be a delightful 75-80 degrees. Also if you want to get off the Interstate, between Sedona and Flagstaff is the waay fun highway 89A, through a beautiful red rock canyon and up some zippy switchbacks (if you don't get stuck behind an RV )

 

Lots of good ideas! I dont think that I will be going for tinted windows, kind of tired of that look.
I am not so concerned for my comfort, as this is just a road trip, and being in Seattle, it doesn't get that hot. I am more concerned for the MINI!

Although the towel on the dash sounds like a good idea...

 

I think that is the way I am planning to go, we are going to head to the Grand Canyon before we hit Vegas.

 

For your list of *must* drives....
The Coronado Trail between Clifton/Morenci and Springerville.
Lodging available in Safford on the south end, Hannigan Meadows in the middle, and Springerville at the north end.

The Dragon's got nothing on this road.... be careful!

http://www.roadtripamerica.com/drive...nado-Trail.htm

 

Oh, this it getting better and better! I was hoping to get some good ideas for roads to drive!

 

Once your a/c has cooled down, switch to recirc for your air souce, the a/c will cool the already cooled air much better, and you will have even cooler air in the car.

 

Even with my MINI's A/C constantly on full blast recirc, it's barely powerful enough to cool the car down to a comfortable temperature, even when it's only 85 degrees outside. Both of my MINIs have been this way, and I'm told that the air temp at the vents is normal. I sure wouldn't want to drive across the desert without window tint and solid sunroof shields! I'm hoping that my tint will help this summer. It's supposed to block out 50% of heat, but I think that's probably BS.

Have a great trip!